After 19 hours on Amtrak with my folding bike (the still-unnamed replacement to America), I traversed the island of Manhattan from Battery Park to (and across) the George Washington Bridge. We used to cross that bridge to visit my grandparents, and I wanted to “feel” it again for the epilogue to my new book (the…
Tag: travel
My brief “return” to Ireland
I got to make a brief “return” to Ireland as a guest blogger on the WWOOF Ireland website. Here’s what I wrote: 3 Farms in Ireland in 6 Weeks Foals followed me, a bag of feed over my shoulder, through the dewy pasture. A hunk of thick, black soil in a potato field yielded to…
“61-Year-Old Woman Plunges to Death Making a TikTok”
Crawling on my belly toward the edge of the cliff, my fingernails gripped the wet, green turf for dear life. Below me, the Atlantic roared, waves crashing violently against jagged rocks, seabirds wheeling in the salt-laden wind. I could almost see the headline: 61-year-old American woman traveling solo plunges to her death in Ireland ….
12 Days of Bikemas — #12: Joy
You constantly hear people say that the roads are dangerous. The roads are not dangerous. On days when there are no motor vehicles, such as during Open Streets events and before marathons and parades, they are lovely to ride bikes on. A joy, in fact. What makes roads unsafe for people on bikes is motor vehicles and…
12 Days of Bikemas — #11: Wild Atlantic Way/Euro Velo 1, Ireland
At 1600 miles/2600 kilometers, the Wild Atlantic Way is one of the world’s longest defined coastal routes. It weaves in, out and around the cliffs and peninsulas of the western and northern coasts of Ireland. Two of the three farms where I volunteered recently during Round Ireland with a Duck were very close to it…
12 Days of Bikemas — #9: Long Island, New York
A 126-mile long/24-mile wide island off the coast of New York City (and, in fact, including two NYC counties — Queens and Brooklyn — on its land mass), Long Island (specifically Nassau and Suffolk counties) was a bastion of suburbia during the 1950s and beyond as potato farms got converted to subdivisions for returning soldiers…
12 Days of Bikemas — #8: Salt Lake City, Utah
I hopped on the Frontrunner train, Utah’s commuter train, at Salt Lake City and took it along the Wasatch Range of the Rocky Mountains to Provo, about half of its 83-mile total route. It has the best bike car I’ve experienced in the USA. A fabulous multi-purpose rack system holds not just cycles of any…
12 Days of Bikemas — #5: Boulder, Colorado
I wrote a whole chapter about Boulder, Colorado in my book, Round America with a Duck ( I lived there for three weeks during my 10,000-mile journey across the USA via bike, buses, trains and working on organic farms), if you are interested. For the sake of quick-to-implement ideas that other places can do right…
12 Days of Bikemas — #2: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
I had a brief Greyhound bus break in Harrisburg, PA during Round America with a Duck, but it was enough time to catch this photo of a bike rack showing rare female representation in our public spaces on bikes*. I think I squealed out loud when I saw it. (Yes, I’m the person who rides my…
Featured on Rough Draft Atlanta
Wow! What a cool surprise today to find this fun article on RoughDraft Atlanta by staff writer Cathy Cobbs, featuring my little duck’s journey. Thank you!
A birthday request
A year ago today I dipped my tire in the Pacific Ocean, after having dipped it months earlier in the Atlantic Ocean as well during my journey Round America with a Duck via bike, buses, trains and working on organic farms. A few days later I turned 60. There were many days I didn’t think…
Practically FREE during America’s birthday week!
Good morning, America! As my gift to you during your birthday week, Round America with a Duck is currently as close to FREE as Amazon will let me make it! Get the digital edition for just 99 cents here in the USA (rising back to its list price of $8.99 by Sunday, July 7). Get…
You are less than $300 away from your own folding bike!
Everyone loves this bike — including me! You’ll read many accounts in my book, Round America with a Duck, of amazing interactions I had as a result of this bike. I did not think it was going to make it across the USA with me — but it did! With flying colors (literally). And the…
Lookout Lavender Farm, book club appearance, book signing!
It’s morning in the Airstream. My last cup of herbal tea while I am here WWOOFing on this lavender farm is steeping. I’ll do my Vinyasa yoga flow in the lavender field and then ride my bike to Cloudland Canyon State Park again, as I did last Sunday. I plan to hike down to the…
Movie news!
For those of you who like to support local and indie businesses, I have great news for you! Round America with a Duck is now available in the movie-making haven of Trilith, Georgia. It’s at the newest bookstore in the USA, Scholar and Scribe (for the exact same price as on Amazon). You can order…
Free book club discussion guide
It’s time to add Round America with a Duck to your book club schedule this year! Both paperback and e-book versions are on target for release March 20, 2024. This free guide is sure to enliven your group discussion. Feel free to contact me if you want me to attend your book club virtually to…
